Meren is Weird

Commander / EDH BG (Golgari) Casual

candyapplecorn

Creature (35)

• 1x Arbor Elf
• 1x Caustic Caterpillar
• 1x Diligent Farmhand
• 1x Elves of Deep Shadow
• 1x Elvish Mystic
• 1x Llanowar Elves
• 1x Oashra Cultivator
• 1x Spore Frog
• 1x Dawntreader Elk
• 1x Fauna Shaman
• 1x Nest Invader
• 1x Sakura-Tribe Elder
• 1x Banewhip Punisher
• 1x Demon's Disciple
• 1x Elvish Rejuvenator
• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Fleshbag Marauder
• 1x Grim Haruspex
• 1x Merciless Executioner
• 1x Pawn of Ulamog
• 1x Plaguecrafter
• 1x Yavimaya Elder
• 1x Yisan, the Wanderer Bard
• 1x Kozilek's Predator
• 1x Smothering Abomination
• 1x Gravebreaker Lamia
• 1x Massacre Girl
• 1x Night Incarnate
• 1x Shadowborn Demon
• 1x Shriekmaw
• 1x Geth, Lord of the Vault
• 1x Grave Titan
• 1x Harvester of Souls
• 1x Butcher of Malakir
• 1x Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet

Sorcery (15)

• 1x Farseek
• 1x Night's Whisper
• 1x Rampant Growth
• 1x Sign in Blood
• 1x Sylvan Scrying
• 1x Buried Alive
• 1x Eldritch Evolution
• 1x Gaze of Granite
• 1x Growth Spasm
• 1x Kodama's Reach
• 1x Primal Growth
• 1x Harmonize
• 1x Jarad's Orders
• 1x Final Parting
• 1x Find / Finality

Artifact (8)

• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Golgari Signet
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Strionic Resonator
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots
• 1x Talisman of Resilience
• 1x Mimic Vat

Enchantment (7)

• 1x Evolutionary Leap
• 1x Oversold Cemetery
• 1x Awakening Zone
• 1x Pernicious Deed
• 1x Deathreap Ritual
• 1x Gutter Grime
• 1x Moldervine Reclamation

Commander (1)

Land (33)

• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 11x Forest
• 1x Golgari Rot Farm
• 1x Grim Backwoods
• 1x Jungle Hollow
• 1x Llanowar Wastes
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 12x Swamp
• 1x Tainted Wood
• 1x Temple of Malady
• 1x Temple of the False God
• 1x Terramorphic Expanse

Instant (1)

• 1x Village Rites

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This is a control deck.

Recur sacrifice effects with Meren of Clan Nel Toth to command the board.

The end-game is to dominate with Geth, Lord of the Vault, Butcher of Malakir or Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet.

Intended Power Level, House Rules and How This Deck was Made

I enjoy making decks myself, from scratch - to me, it's part of the game. I'm the type of player that won't copy other peoples' decks (netdecking).

According to /tg/, this deck is probably a 6/10. I'm sure if infinite combos and more expensive cards were added I could get it to 7/10. I haven't looked at other peoples' Meren of Clan Nel Toth decks, and wouldn't be surprised if people have made CEDH 9/10 and 10/10 decks with her. I'm not that good, and that's not my playgroup :)

My playgroup has a house rule for no infinite combos, so this deck doesn't have any (if there are any, they weren't purposely put in). Additionally, my playgroup likes to play sidegraded and upgraded pre-cons, which is about my personal skill level anyways, so that's the type of environment this deck (and my other decks) is meant to play in. It's not a CEDH deck and I'm not a CEDH player.

Meren

Meren of Clan Nel Toth is probably the most boring card in the deck. She's kind of like a sidegrade from Sheoldred, Whispering One, except she's cheaper, her effect isn't as good, and she has green. Green is the color of land ramp and at three mana less than Sheoldred, Meren can definitely help ramp with cards like Diligent Farmhand and Sakura-Tribe Elder.

Meren of Clan Nel Toth revives creatures. It's important to remember that even if her experience counters are less than the mana cost of a creature in the graveyard, the creature still gets returned to the hand. It's also important to remember that the cleanup phase, which includes the part where players discard cards from their hands, comes after Meren's ability. It's also important to remember that if Meren dies, the player still keeps the experience counters.

Geth, Lord of the Vault

That's right, Geth, Lord of the Vault gets his own panel, because he's secretly the star of this deck.

Originally, I wanted to build a deck around Geth, Lord of the Vault, but didn't want to spend mono-black $$$. It would definitely be possible, but many of the mono-black staples like Cabal Coffers and Nirkana Revenant are dozens of dollars. This deck is great because it lets Geth, Lord of the Vault hit the board most games, while also having green and doing other things (and it was much easier on my wallet!).

Deck Tech

• Geth, Lord of the Vault - Closest thing in the deck to a win-con. Get this guy out after a wipe and if he dies just revive him with Meren.
• Butcher of Malakir - He's an edict on a body. Pretty strong. Should be able to lock down the board.
• Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet - He can single-handedly control the board. I am resisting a very strong urge to swap him out for Rune-Scarred Demon.
• Gutter Grime - If not dealt with, probably a win-con
• Moldervine Reclamation, Deathreap Ritual - Draw cards when things die
• Grim Haruspex, Harvester of Souls, Smothering Abomination - Draw cards when thing die, on a body!
• Grave Titan - Not a win-con but his zombie tokens are very useful for sacrifice targets and for piling up experience counters.
• Strionic Resonator - Probably the best card in the deck as it allows Meren to get two experience counters or revive two creatures. If I decide to slot in Rune-Scarred Demon, Strionic Resonator would be the #1 tutor target.
• Kozilek's Predator, Pawn of Ulamog, Nest Invader, Awakening Zone, Growth Spasm - Eldrazi Spawn synergize really well with Meren.
• Yisan, the Wanderer Bard - Just does his own thing. He produces a lot of value and while deck building I like to include the occasional activated ability with a mana cost. He can get out important cards like Spore Frog, Fauna Shaman and Sakura-Tribe Elder, so if he can be played on turn three, he probably should. He also helps to recover from a board wipe.
• Massacre Girl - Do I need to say anything? She can be recurred thanks to Meren, though it'll cost a commander penalty.
• Gaze of Granite, Pernicious Deed - This deck is designed to win the long game, so wiping out EVERYTHING isn't so bad.
• Eldritch Evolution - Tutor effects break the commander format. This deck is full of creatures. This is a creature tutor. Meren can revive whatever was sacrificed, too
• Oversold Cemetery - Didn't pull Strionic Resonator? That's ok, this thing at least gets a 2nd thing from the graveyard every turn, albeit into the hand and not directly into play.
• Village Rites - Combos with Fleshbag Marauder if there are no other creatures in play. Normally one wouldn't play Fleshbag Marauder on turn three, opting instead to wait until after Meren of Clan Nel Toth is in play, but if an opening hand has Fleshbag Marauder and Village Rites, the stack can be used to sacrifice Fleshbag Marauder to Village Rites before Fleshbag Marauder has to sacrifice itself to itself.
• Demon's Disciple, Merciless Executioner, Plaguecrafter, Fleshbag Marauder - Once Meren of Clan Nel Toth gets three experience counters, these cards spell endless sacrifices for the opponent.

Lands and Mana Curve

Yes, there are only 33 lands. A mulligan to get 2+ lands might be needed, but the deck has many ways to ramp out more, so I budgeted the other seven card slots to burst-draw effects like Sign in Blood and Harmonize. The deck runs better the more mana it has, which leads me to the other panel topic: the MANA CURVE. As of this writing, it's 3.09. It's not actually 3.09, as there are a few cards with in their mana costs, but tappedout is also counting the dual-card as a cost of , when it's actually , so whatever. I've been trying to keep the mana curves of my decks below three lately, and this deck nearly gets there.

Maybe cards

- Fierce Empath (in collection) - Forced March (in collection) - Rune-Scarred Demon (in collection) - Should probably swap in for Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet as it's a 6/6 vs 5/5, has flying and has immediate value.

Cards from my collection

• Evolving Wilds
• Reliquary Tower
• Grim Backwoods
• Swiftfoot Boots
• Sign in Blood
• Geth, Lord of the Vault
• Grave Titan
• Fauna Shaman
• Farseek
• Arbor Elf
• Llanowar Elves
• Cultivate
• Oversold Cemetery
• Eternal Witness

Buylist

1 Awakening Zone 1 Banewhip Punisher 1 Buried Alive 1 Butcher of Malakir 1 Caustic Caterpillar 1 Dawntreader Elk 1 Deathreap Ritual 1 Demon's Disciple 1 Diligent Farmhand 1 Eldritch Evolution 1 Elves of Deep Shadow 1 Elvish Mystic 1 Elvish Rejuvenator 1 Evolutionary Leap 1 Final Parting 1 Find // Finality 1 Fleshbag Marauder 1 Gaze of Granite

1 Golgari Rot Farm 1 Golgari Signet

1 Gravebreaker Lamia

1 Grim Haruspex 1 Growth Spasm 1 Gutter Grime 1 Harmonize 1 Harvester of Souls 1 Jarad's Orders 1 Jungle Hollow 1 Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet 1 Kodama's Reach 1 Kozilek's Predator 1 Lightning Greaves

1 Llanowar Wastes 1 Massacre Girl 1 Merciless Executioner 1 Meren of Clan Nel Toth 1 Mimic Vat 1 Moldervine Reclamation 1 Nest Invader 1 Night Incarnate 1 Night's Whisper 1 Oashra Cultivator

1 Pawn of Ulamog 1 Pernicious Deed 1 Plaguecrafter 1 Primal Growth 1 Rampant Growth 1 Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 Shadowborn Demon 1 Shriekmaw 1 Skullclamp 1 Smothering Abomination 1 Sol Ring 1 Spore Frog 1 Strionic Resonator

1 Sylvan Scrying 1 Tainted Wood 1 Talisman of Resilience 1 Temple of Malady 1 Temple of the False God 1 Terramorphic Expanse 1 Village Rites 1 Yavimaya Elder 1 Yisan, the Wanderer Bard

Date added	4 years
Last updated	4 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	5 - 0 Mythic Rares 23 - 0 Rares 23 - 0 Uncommons 26 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.09
Tokens	Copy Clone, Eldrazi Spawn 0/1 C, Experience Token, Morph 2/2 C, Ooze X/X G, Vampire */* B, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	Casual Custom Decks